To Hell and Back
by ChaoticDucky
Summary: Zeref would do anything for his little brother, He would fight to hell and back, As long as Natsu was safe.


_**this is a one shot that just wouldn't leave my brain alone. i wanna cry. and this one shot is the result of me learning about Natsu and Zerefs relationship and just *sobs* being sad to begin with doesn't help but what can i do. anyways! hope you enjoy. im going to go sob now, just a little.**_

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Zeref knew.

He knew he would take on any dragon, demon, or fairy that came his way.

He would fight tooth and nail, to the end of the universe,

He would fight to hell and back.

As long as his little brother was safe.

the nine months he had to wait for him was the longest of his life, he wanted someone to play with, and to protect. His mama had told him that he had to protect his baby brother because that's what family did. he remembers her sweeping her pale rose colored locks behind her shoulder as she smiled and held him. Her face is a little distorted with his fuzzy memories. (Its funny, he thinks absently, how hes held so fiercely onto the bad memories that he can no longer remember the faces of his parents. But his mothers hair was Pink, like a pale rose, or the rainbow cherry blossoms before they're rainbow at night in spring, that pink color. His father's hair was a charcoal color that defied all logic with its spiked-mess-ness and that the only thing he remembers for sure) He remembers her pressing his tiny hand to her tummy as the baby kicked and being confused when she told him that that was his sibling, the resulting question next in response with his childish mindset at the time being horror at _how could she eat her baby?_ He'll never forget his mothers laugh at his question that day (he has a passing wave of guilt that his little brother will never know the sound of their parents voices, never know names or faces but he can't do much about it, he would be 400 years too late to remedy this after all)

He remembers when his mother had told him she was going to have her baby and to go get his father, the ensuing chaos was and still is unrivaled to anything he's ever seen in 400 years, (because did his father just run into the door? _six times?_ ) he remembers his horror at his mothers screams, and crying because he had no idea what was going on and he was scared.

Then He remembers a fragile mother placing a tiny even more fragile bundle in his arms and her telling him in a soft voice to say hi to his baby brother. He remembers being in so much awe as he stared at the tiny little hands, and the salmon hair that fluffed upon his head in a cute little tuft, his big eyes that stared up at him with onyx color so much like his own, but what entirely made him vow to protect the little bundle he held was when he giggled and reached up a tiny hand to his face as if he was saying hello back.

He was born the 21st of June.

The first day of summer.

It fit that their mother named him for the season he seemed to be the embodiment of.

With sunny smiles and a hyper active attitude he was all sunshine and summer... and... and.. Just natsu.

But all summers fade to fall.

And Natsu was not an exception.

Admittedly, something so small was entirely too fragile in a world filled with war and the darkness of human-kind.

Because that's what killed him.

After only seven years of life in a world rife with war and death little Natsu Dragneel met his end to a mage slitting his artery in his neck. He died from blood loss within the span of an hour, as a sickening mage stood above him spouting beliefs about some whacked out god that had to do with dragons or some... _thing_ but what ever it was Zeref wanted nothing to fucking do with it _thank you very much._

Zeref remembers that night far too clearly even after 400 years of trying to forget. He could almost TASTE the hatred he held for humans at that moment, targeting someone he held so close to his heart was unforgivable. But first, he had to save him. Then, he would make this world a better place for his little brother to play and thrive in, because he would not allow this to happen EVER again, because he was supposed to protect his brother and he was going to do just that. But first save him.

Grief makes us do things we aren't proud of in response to the sick feeling of loss.

Zeref was sure he probably could of gone about things an entirely different way, but in his grief, so surrounded by clouds as he was, he forgot what the sun looked like and just let himself drift away, and he began trying to figure out any way he could to bring his brother back, because.. because _natsu couldn't be dead._

He just couldn't accept that. He wouldn't let his brother go.

So he started learning Magic.

Any kind of magic.

As long as it had to do with life, or death, or just how magic connects EVERYTHING.

After preserving his brother in a crystal he started trying to do whatever he could to figure out how to bring him back.

But his ideas were somewhat.. Impractical.

Its not like he was testing them.. Honestly. He just wanted his brother back.

But no one saw things the way he did.. and they turned him away.

Cursed him to walk the land alone.

Killing. Everything.

Oh how he hates death, and everything to do with it. It steals your loved ones and doesn't give them back.

But Zeref had an unwavering determination to have his brother back and to share at least ONE more summer smile, because Natsu's smiles were always the best, they could make _anything_ okay, and he missed that. So he began experimenting. (he means seriously if they were going to curse him for IDEAS he may as well just go for the whole fucking shebang) Immortality proved to be.. Useful. He had far more time on his hands now than he ever had before, and a goal to reach. So he just.. Experimented: Made demons, Helped one of the only friends he could remember that wasn't natsu unlock an untapped part of his magic, and when he was sure he could do it without a flaw...

He did it.

He brought his little brother back to life as one of his creations.

His best creation.

Etherious Natsu Dragneel.

And Natsu had no idea who he even was.

It stung.

But Zeref was patient.

He would either remember by himself or Zeref would tell him, himself. He had a lot of time on his hands after all.

And he would fight to hell and back.

He didn't mind.

As long as his little brother was safe.


End file.
